Ten lives in mine: Creating portraits of influential Chinese educators

This is an essay about research methodology, particularly the use of narrative method, in a project which depicts portraits of 10 influential educators of China. The essay begins with reflections on the dialogue of civilizations and the potential future influence of Chinese civilization in the global community. It then goes on to consider the difficulties of interpreting this civilization through the lens of objectivist social science theories. Fundamental aspects of narrative method are then explored, and reasons why it is able to bridge profound differences of culture and epistemology between China and the Western world. Next the lessons that emerged in the process of creating portraits of the influential educators are presented, illustrating core values of the Chinese educational tradition in a dynamic and vivid way. The essay ends with a pencil sketch of the youngest of the influential educators.